The Democratic Dilemma of American Education: Out of Many, One

289 Pages·2012·6.618 MB·English

by  Arnold Shober

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Dilemmas in american Politics series
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series eDitor: craig a. rimmerman
o the Democratic
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“This book fills a real need in the field of education policy. Shober skillfully uses
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important concepts in public policy and political science to demonstrate how
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fundamental democratic values shape current education debates. . . . This book
is a great fit for undergraduate courses in public policy, public administration, t
and education. It provides an unbiased, easy-to-understand presentation of the h
american
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leading academic, historical, and political debates in education policy.”

—DaviD J. Fleming, Furman university D
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“The Democratic Dilemma of American Education serves as a sophisticated m education
introduction to the problems and successes of education in America. As Shober so co- o
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gently argues, those issues are embedded in our democratic approach to educating our
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children. This perspective blends the best of policy scholarship and democratic theory.” a
—John F. Witte, university oF Wisconsin–maDison t
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c Out of Many, One?

This compelling book asks: How can American education policy be consistent with democratic D
ideals? Robust democracy is the combination of participation, self-rule, equality, understanding, i
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and inclusion, but these norms can produce contradictory policy. Local control in education e
policy can undermine educational equality. Participation in teachers’ unions can improve working m
conditions but thwart self-rule by local taxpayers.
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The Democratic Dilemma of American Education draws on contemporary research in political a
science and education policy to offer remarkably balanced insights into these challenging issues.
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Expertly navigating local, state, and federal layers of education policy, Arnold Shober examines f

contemporary controversies over education governance, teachers’ unions and collective bar- a
gaining, school funding, school choice, academic accountability, and desegregation. Shober m
describes the inherent practical dilemmas of current policy and the difficulties policymakers face
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in overcoming them to produce lasting educational reform in a democratic, federal system of
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government. Timely, engaging, and accessible, this is the ideal resource for courses in public policy i
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as well as education and politics.
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arnolD shober is assistant professor of government at Lawrence University in Appleton, Wisconsin.
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His publications include Splintered Accountability: State Governance and Education Reform.
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cover image © scott eisen/Demotix/Demotix/corbis
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A Member of the Perseus Books Group Arnold Shober
www.westviewpress.com
www.perseusacademic.com
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The Democratic Dilemma
of American Education
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Dilemmas in American Politics
Series Editor: Craig A. Rimmerman, Hobart and William Smith Colleges
If the answers to the problems facing U.S. democracy were easy, politicians would solve them,
accept credit, and move on. But certain dilemmas have confronted the American political
system continuously. They defy solution; they are endemic to the system. Some can best be
described as institutional dilemmas: How can Congress be both a representative body and
a national decision maker? How can the president communicate with more than 250 million
citizens effectively? Why do we have a two-party system when many voters are disappointed
with the choices presented to them? Others are policy dilemmas: How do we find compro-
mises on issues that defy compromise, such as abortion policy? How do we incorporate racial
and ethnic minorities or immigrant groups into American society, allowing them to reap
the benefits of this land without losing their identity? How do we fund health care for our
poorest or oldest citizens?
Dilemmas such as these are what propel students toward an interest in the study of U.S.
government. Each book in the Dilemmas in American Politics series addresses a “real world”
problem, raising the issues that are of most concern to students. Each is structured to cover
the historical and theoretical aspects of the dilemma but also to explore the dilemma from
a practical point of view and to speculate about the future. The books are designed as sup-
plements to introductory courses in American politics or as case studies to be used in upper-
level courses. The link among them is the desire to make the real issues confronting the
political world come alive in students’ eyes.
EDITORIAL BOARD
Amy Black Ruth Jones Karen O’Connor
Wheaton College Arizona State University American University
MaryAnne Borrelli Josiah Lambert Richard Pacelle
Connecticut College St. Bonaventure University Georgia Southern University
Diana Evans Jay McCann Ellen Riggle
Trinity College Purdue University University of Kentucky
William Hudson Barbara Norrander
Providence College University of Arizona
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BOOKS IN THIS SERIES
The Democratic Dilemma of American Education: Out of Many, One?
Arnold Shober
The New Citizenship: Unconventional Politics, Activism, and Service, Fourth Edition
Craig A. Rimmerman
“Can We All Get Along?”: Racial and Ethnic Minorities in American Politics, Fifth Edition
Paula D. McClain and Joseph Stewart Jr.
The Lesbian and Gay Movements: Assimilation or Liberation?
Craig A. Rimmerman
Onward Christian Soldiers? The Religious Right in American Politics, Third Edition
Clyde Wilcox and Carin Larson
Claiming the Mantle: How Presidential Nominations Are Won and Lost Before the Votes Are Cast
R. Lawrence Butler
Voting for Women: How the Public Evaluates Women Candidates
Kathleen A. Dolan
Two Parties—or More? The American Party System, Second Edition
John F. Bibby and L. Sandy Maisel
The Role of the Supreme Court in American Politics: The Least Dangerous Branch?
Richard L. Pacelle Jr.
Money Rules: Financing Elections in America
Anthony Gierzynski
The Accidental System: Health Care Policy in America
Michael D. Reagan
The Image-Is-Everything Presidency: Dilemma in American Leadership
Richard W. Waterman, Robert Wright, and Gilbert St. Clair
The Angry American: How Voter Rage Is Changing the Nation, Second Edition
Susan J. Tolchin
Remote and Controlled: Media Politics in a Cynical Age, Second Edition
Matthew Robert Kerbel
Making Americans, Remaking America: Immigration and Immigrant Policy
Louis DeSipio and Rodolfo de la Garza
From Rhetoric to Reform? Welfare Policy in American Politics
Anne Marie Cammisa
No Neutral Ground? Abortion Politics in an Age of Absolutes
Karen O’Connor
Payment Due: A Nation in Debt, a Generation in Trouble
Timothy J. Penny and Steven E. Schier
Bucking the Deficit: Economic Policymaking in the United States
G. Calvin Mackenzie and Saranna Thornton
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The Democratic Dilemma
of American Education
Out of Many, One?
Arnold Shober
Lawrence University

A Member of the Perseus Books Group
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Westview Press was founded in 1975 in Boulder, Colorado, by notable publisher and intellectual Fred
Praeger. Westview Press continues to publish scholarly titles and high-quality undergraduate- and
graduate-level textbooks in core social science disciplines. With books developed, written, and edited
with the needs of serious nonfiction readers, professors, and students in mind, Westview Press honors
its long history of publishing books that matter.
Copyright © 2012 by Westview Press
Published by Westview Press,
A Member of the Perseus Books Group
All rights reserved. Printed in the United States of America. No part of this book may be reproduced in
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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Shober, Arnold F., 1976-
The democratic dilemma of American education : out of many, one? / Arnold Shober.
pages cm
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978-0-8133-4536-9 (hardcover : alk. paper)— ISBN 978-0-8133-4537-6 (e-book) 1. Education
and state—United States. 2. Democracy and education—United States. I. Title.
LC89.S495 2012
379.73—dc23
2011047235
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
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for Gretchen
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Contents
List of Illustrations xiii
Abbreviations xv
Acknowledgments xvii
1. Out of Many, One? 1
Public Policy 3
Democratic Norms 8
Conclusion 26
Suggested Readings 27
2. Structuring Democracy in
American Education 29
Governing American Education 31
Federal Institutions 33
State Institutions 36
Local Institutions 40
School Institutions 43
Conclusion 44
Suggested Readings 44
3. Including Americans 47
The Problem: What’s Race Got to Do with It? 49
Healing Hearts Through Desegregation . . . 54
. . . Or Healing Minds Through Academic Achievement? 57
Evaluating Federal Action 61

Conclusion 78
Suggested Readings 79
ix